Structural coupling.



W. LOUDEN.

STRUCTURAL COUPLING. APPLICATION man FEB. 5. 1913.

1,1 92,216. Patented July 25, 1916.

- Ewuwtoo WILLIAM, LoUnEitoF FAIRFIELD, IOWA.

STRUCTURAL COUPLING.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, IVILLIAM LoUDnN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Fairfield, in the county of Jefferson and State ofIowa,'have invented a new and useful Improvement in StructuralCouplings,

of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to couplings intended principally to connect theframe ele ments of cattle stalls together, although it may be used forother purposes.

It comprises two coupling members designed to embrace and hold frameelements between them and means to clamp the members together, and itconsists of a construction and arrangement of the members whereby theywill be more sanitary than those heretofore in use; also, of otherfeatures hereinafter described and duly defined in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 is a side view of a couplingapplied to two sections of tubing at right angles to each other, such asare generally used in the construction of cattle stalls, and whichembodies my invention, Fig. 2 is a transverse section on line 2-2 ofFig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrow, Fig. 3 is the same online 33 of Fig. 1, and Fig. 4 is a longi tudinal section on line 44 ofFig. 2, taking in the entire width of the coupling as shown by Fig. 1,the upper portion of the tubing being shown broken away.

Referring to the drawings, A and B are sections of tubing set at anangle to each other so as to form a T.

C and D are mating members of the coupling used to join the sectionstogether. The lower ends of the members (as shown in the drawing) aremade to fit the contour of the section B and are fitted on theiropposite sides with lugs E and F, having openings in which bolts G areplaced to draw these ends together to securely grip the section Bbetween them. The other ends of the members C and D are made to fit thecontour of the section A which are preferably set at rightangles to thesection B, as shown in the drawing, but maybe set at the angle requiredfor the purpose intended. The member C is fitted with an outstanding lipor flange H along its upper or outer end which is cut away at the edgesof the memher for the :purpose hereafter stated. The meeting end of themember D is provided with an outwardly curved or arched portionSpecificationof Letters Patent.

Patented July 25, 1916.

Application filed February 5, 1913. Serial No. 746,323.

I, having its extreme endJ drawn inwardly to overlap and come in contactwith the portion C of the member C. A. centrally located inwardlyextending lip K is formed on the inner or concave side of the part Iwhich is adapted to catch on the outstandinglip or flange H.

When the members C and D are placed in the coupling position on thesections A and B, the lips or flanges H and K will catch against eachother, and the bolts G being inserted in the lugs E and F and tightenedup will draw the members together, and will hold the sections A and Bsecurely between them. The engagement of the lips II and K insures'aslight hinge effect, this end of the members being first connectedtogether and the other ends being afterward drawn together by the boltsG, thus clamping the members on the frame elements.

Experience has proved that couplings made of two members and clampedtogether are much more convenient and practical in the construction ofcattle stalls than single piece couplings, but these two piececouplings, as heretofore made, have been more or less objectionable onaccount of their unsanitary construction.

One'of the objects of my invention is to overcome this objection. Theexterior portions of the members C and D are made smooth and symmetricaland are practically free from notches or crevices which will catch andhold dirt. The outwardly curved or arched portion I is not needed somuch to cause the lips or flanges II and K to catch against each other,and thereby lock the members, as to provide this part of the couplingwith a smooth symmetrical exterior that will be free from recesses orcrevices which would render it unsanitary. The ends of the flange II arecut away so the sides N of the arched portion I can be rounded down tocover it, and to close any crevices which might become filled with dirtor disease germs. The meeting edges of flanges L and M on the lugs E andF are beveled, one inwardly and the other outwardly, so that they may bedrawn more closely together than if they were left square or flat.Hitherto these flanges have stood apart or one of them has beenoverlapped on the other to close the space between them. While theoverlapping may be better than leaving an opening between the flanges,it is still objectionable because it forms an off-set or shoulder on theeX- terior of the coupling which will consequently aflord lodgment fordirt and debris. The flanges on the lugs E a-ndF being beveled inopposite directions will 'be practically even on their outer faces, andthe edges being thin and springy, the coupling members can always bedrawn closely together and the opening closed by the overlying flanges.They will also permit of some variation in the size of the section B, asthey can be sprung to some extent by the tightening of the bolts tosecurely grip the section. If any of the edges should be sprung slightlyoutward so as to become uneven, they can be easily smoothed off with afew cuts of .a file, which could not be readily done if the edges of theflanges were left square and simply overlapped.

It will be readily seen that the construc tion described furnishes aninternal lock, or interlock, which is completely inclosed by theoutwardly curved or arched portion I of the member D, which effectuallyexcludes dirt and even dust from entering the internal part of the lock.

If desired, the recesses between the spaced apart lugs E and F may befilled with soft cement or other plastic material which will be heldsecurely in place by the flanges L and M. Also spacing apart the lugs Eand F, and placing beveled flanges on their outer edges will so enlargethem that their exterior surface may be made smoother and more rounded,whereby the cleaning necessary to keep the coupling in a strictlysanitary condition will be facilitated.

By means of the construction shown the coupling will not only hold thesection securely together, but it will also present a smooth,symmetrical and pleasing appearance. It will be easy to clean and easyto keep clean, thereby insuring a strictly sanitary condition.

\Vhat I claim is:

l. A structural coupling, comprising two mating members designed to holdframe elements between them, said members having at one of their meetingedges interfitting portions constituting a positive overhanginginterlocking means for said edges, outwardly-extending lugs on the otheredges of the members, said lugs being spaced apart and provided withinwardly extending flanges adapted to abut each other at the edges, themeeting edges of said flanges being beveled in opposite directions,whereby when they are drawn together, the interlocking means istightened and the circumferential clamping effect upon the frameelements is increased, and means to draw said lugs together.

2. In a device of the character described, two mating members designedto hold frame elements between them, an outstanding flange on one end ofone of the members, an outwardly arched portion on the mating end of theother member, adapted to pass over said outstanding flange and lap onthe body of the other member, a centrally-located inwardly-extending lipon the inner or concave side of said arched portion adapted to catchagainst the outstanding flange on the other member, and means to drawthe other ends of the members together.-

3. In a device of the character described, two mating members designedto hold frame elements between them, an outstanding flange on one end ofone of the members, an outwardly arched portion on the mating end of theother member, adapted to pass over said outstanding flangeand lap on thebody of the other member, a centrally-located inwardly-extending lip onthe inner or con-' cave side of said arched portion adapted to catchagainst the outstanding flange on the other member, and means to drawthe other ends of the members together, the ends of the outstandingflange being cut away, and the edges of the outwardly arched portionbeing rounded down to inclose the cut-away ends of the outstandingflange.

4. In a device of the character described, two mating members designedto hold frame elements between them, an outstanding flange on one end ofone of the members, an outwardly arched portion on the mating end of theother member, adapted to pass over said outstanding flange and lap onthe body of the other member, a centrally-located inwardly-extending lipon the inner or concave side of said arched portion adapted to catchagainst the outstanding flange on the other member, and means to drawthe other ends of the members together, the ends of the outstandingflange being cut away, and the edges of the outwardly arched portionbeing rounded down to inclose the cut-away ends of the outstandingflange, and the free end of the arched portion being drawn in to come incontact with the body of the other member.

Fairfield, Iowa, Feb. 3, 1913.

WILLIAM LOUDEN.

Witnesses:

CARRIE L. BEEDLE, .BENTON STEELE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Gom nissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G,

